Top Canadian skier critically hurt in Utah

World-class Canadian freestyle skier Sarah Burke was in critical condition and sedated at a Salt Lake City hospital on Wednesday, a day after she was badly injured during a training run, doctors said.

Burke, 29, was taken by air ambulance to the University of Utah hospital on Tuesday after falling during a half-pipe run at Park City Mountain Resort.

Burke, considered one of the top female half-pipe athletes in the world, has reached the podium at every career World Cup start, the Canadian Freestyle Ski Association said on its website.

Sarah sustained serious injuries and remains intubated and sedated in critical condition, Dr. Safdar Ansari, a physician at the hospital, said in a statement released by Burke's spokeswoman.

Publicist Nicole Wool said Burke's husband, Rory Bushfield, and other members of her family were at her bedside and wanted to express thanks for well wishes arriving from around the world.

Sarah is a very strong woman and she will most certainly fight to recover, Bushfield said in the statement.

The family asked for privacy and encouraged fans to post messages on Burke's Facebook page.

We're all very concerned for Sarah and her family, obviously, said Peter Judge, Canadian Freestyle Ski Association chief executive.

Any injury to any of our athletes is a blow and something we're concerned about, he said.

Judge declined to discuss the nature of Burke's injuries and said he had little information on the incident that caused them, but had been told she landed and fell after landing.

He said Burke had not been attempting a new trick or anything out of the norm at the time.

Burke, of Squamish, British Columbia, was treated at Park City on Tuesday before she was flown to the hospital, resort spokesman Andy Miller said.

He could not elaborate on details leading up to the injuries.